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Syria, arms to go to Geneva, not for victory…

Syria has been the center of discussions last week at the G8 summit in Northern Ireland and at the Doha conference that brought together the so-called “friends” of Syria, including the United States, France and England.

In the conference of Doha, various countries declared their willingness to intensify their assistance to the rebels in an attempt to re-equilibrate the balance of power in favor of the Syrian revolutionaries on the field before the holding of a peace conference in Geneva. The latest victories and advanced of the Syrian regime on the military front have actually raised concerns among Western powers and Gulf monarchies that they could loose the opportunity to impose some of their conditions for a future settlement of the conflict. This latter situation is the reason for the recent shipment of arms to the Free Syrian Army.

However, Western countries still refuse to provide weapons. Laurent Fabius, French Minister of Foreign Affaires, openly declared that France does not want to provide weapons to the Syrian rebellion that could “backfire” against Paris after.

The Free Syrian Army confirmed having received Friday, June 21 2013 from abroad quantities of “modern” arms that could “change the course of the battle,” including anti-aircraft and anti-tank weapons. The rebellion also called for heavy weapons to protect civilian areas from the bombings and other attacks of the regime. This recent military assistance came mainly from Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

This shipment of arms does nevertheless not change the objectives of major international powers as it was reiterated in the last summit of the G8 and in the Doha conference. The U.S. leader John Kerry repeatedly said that the rebels needed more support in order “to go to Geneva” and reverse “the imbalance of forces on the field.” In no situation whatsoever, the victory of the revolution for the sake of the Syrian revolutionary masses is or was part of the international agenda, but the interests of Western and Gulf powers still are and will be. The Syrian revolutionary masses are aware of this game, as we can see with the placard designed by the protesters of Kafranbel on June 21, 2013: “Obama you send us your “weapons” to only continue the conflict?! Give us weapons to win our revolution once and for all!!!

The calls for the organization the fastest as possible of the peace conference on Syria, called Geneva 2, have not ceased, while Western and Russian embassies, declared their will to see an agreement found for a government of transition, “formed by mutual consent” between the opposition and the regime. The only difference between the positions of the Western governments and the Gulf monarchies on one side and Iran, Russian, and China’s positions on the other side remains the same: what fate for the dictator Bashar al Assad? Russia wants to maintain the dictator, while Western powers want a new leader, even more open to their interests than Bashar al Assad.

The G8 leaders also said that they are “very concerned” about the “growing threat of terrorism and extremism in Syria,” lamenting “the increasing sectarian nature of the conflict” in the country. These statements completely ignore the resilience displayed on the field by Syrian revolutionary masses that continue to oppose sectarianism, which is fostered by the regime and some opposition factions supported by the Gulf monarchies, and groups using terrorist acts as Jabhat al Nusra. In many liberated regions of Syria, numerous demonstrations took place against the abuses and behavior of Jabhat al Nusra and similar groups.

The G8 countries (USA, Russia, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, UK) demanded as well the Syrian authorities and the opposition to “undertake a joint commitment” at the future peace conference in Geneva “to destroy and drive out of Syria all organizations and individuals affiliated with Al-Qaeda and all other organizations involved in terrorism. “The only way to stop the terrorism and the use of sectarianism by both the Syrian regime and groups linked to al Qaeda is the continuation of the revolution until the downfall of the regime and the victory of the masses for the objectives of the uprising: Freedom and Social Justice. The only way to defeat these evils is the empowerment and the self-organization of the popular classes and not agreements made by imperialist powers, the criminal regime, and an opportunist section of the Syrian opposition at the expense of the revolutionary masses. It is in the liberated regions of Syria, which got rid of the regime, that we have seen growing and increasing opposition to Jabhat al Nusra and similar reactionary groups. It is not to say that this is a mechanical phenomenon, but it is clear that the overthrow of the regime and the strengthening of self-organizations of the masses is the best way to build a society based on freedom and dignity and that can oppose reactionary and authoritarian groups.

The objectives in the recent shipment of weapons, relatively small still, is by no means to allow the victory of the Syrian revolution but to move toward a balance of power, which is far from being achieved and guarantied actually given the massive aid provided by Iran and Russia to the criminal regime of Assad but just to allow the revolutionaries to survive and push them to accept an agreement with the regime.

An agreement with the Syrian regime would mark the end of the Syrian revolutionary process and certainly it’s defeat as well, and this is why the only alternative for a democratic, social and independent Syria is the continuation of the popular revolution in its peaceful and military forms, the support of international progressive organizations and people of conscience, and that Western and other governments immediately provide weapons, without any political conditions, to the sections of the Free Syrian Army, which serve the objectives of the revolutions and are mandated by the masses to defend the revolution.